Double strand feed press



1968 c. R. BRADLEE DOUBLE STRAND FEED PRESS 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 15, 1965 INVENTOR Chafles R Bmdhee:

L ATTORNEYS Feb. 20, 1968 c. R. BRADLEE 3,369,387

DOUBLE STRAND FEED PRESS Filed Oct. 15, 1965 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR Chafles R. ETQCMQ mm M; mMu

ATTORNEYS Feb. 20, 1968 c. R. BRADLEE DOUBLE STRAND FEED PRESS 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Oct. 15, 1965 .SoaomQ R. Bmdlee ATTORNEYS Feb. 20, 1968 c. R. BRADLEE 3,369,387

DOUBLE STRAND FEED PRESS Filed Oct. 15, 1965 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 MHCHlNE TIME CHHRT BLBNKlNQ PLUNGER oweu uP RlGHT SIDE 9 BLnNmNc PL UNGER DWELL uP "o 0 Q Q LEFT suns DWELL d TRHNSFER sum: I 65 Q, A D 6 4 DWELL INVENTOR ChaH s R BmcMee BY 13min Mam ATTORNEYS United States Patent Ofiice 3,369,387 Patented Feb. 20, 1968 3,369,387 DOUBLE STRAND FEED PRESS Charles R. Bradlee, Cheshire, Conn., assignor to Textron, Inc., Providence, R.I., a corporation of Rhode Island Filed Oct. 15, 1965, Ser. No. 496,648 8 Claims. (Cl. 72-335) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention is directed to a double strand feed press such as a cam eyelet machine and the like and, more'particularly, comprises a machine tool for forming metal articles which, in combination, includes a frame, a first tool set mounted on one side of the frame, said first tool set including a plurality of plungers having punches mounted thereon and mating dies positioned with respect to each other such that the plungers may advance the punches toward and away from said mating dies, a second tool set mounted adjacent to said first tool set and positioned on the other side of said frame, said second tool set including a plurality of plungers having punches mounted thereon and mating dies positioned with respect to each other such that the plungers may advance the punches toward and away from said mating dies, and transfer means mounted in said frame for sequentially advancing through said first and second tool sets metal blanks being formed by the first and second tool sets, respectively.

This invention relates to machine tools and more particularly to multiple plunger power presses such as cam eyelet machines and the like, suitable for automatically producing shells and other formed parts.

I A cam eyelet machine is utilized to shape metal blanks by such consecutive operations as drawing, bottom or side piercing, fiuting, flange flattening, resizing, dimpling, clipping, etc. Special devices can also be added to permit the accomplishment of such operations as lettering, heading and threading. Generally the metal blanks, which are shaped by the machine, are cut by the machine from a strip of metal feed from a reel. The reel is usually positioned in front of the first or blanking plunger so that the strip passes directly over the blanking die through a roll feed and is finally wound on a scrap reel at the rear of the machine.

In the cam eyelet machines of the prior art, a single strip of metal is fed into one side of the machine and is then formed in a number of cyclic punch and transfer steps. Since the operation of the machine is cyclic in nature, a given number of parts will be formed in a fixed amount of time. Although the number of parts produced in a given amount of time can be increased by utilizing two separate machines positioned beside each other, this arrangement not only doubles the initial capital investment, but requires additional floor space and maintenance, not to mention additional operators.

In view of the foregoing, a new and improved machine was required which would not only increase the number of parts produced in a given cycle, but which would also result in substantial cost savings in comparison with the use of two separate machines.

Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a new and improved apparatus for forming metal articles.

Another object of this invention is to provide a new and improved cam eyelet machine for forming metal parts and the like.

Another object of this invention is to provide a new and improved cam eyelet machine for producing about twice the number of parts produced by the prior art cam eyelet machines for a given cycle of operation.

A further object of this invention is to provide a new and improved cam eyelet machine which utilizes a single frame, a pair of plunger-die mechanisms mounted on either side of the frame and operable in a time-phase relationship with each other, a transfer mechanism for moving parts to various stations of the die mechanisms, and means for feeding strip stock to both sides of the machine in a timed relationship.

A still further object of this invention is to produce about twice the number of articles produced by prior art cam eyelet machines in substantially the same cycle time.

Still other objects and advantages of this invention will in part be obvious and will in part appear hereinafter.

In accordance with this invention, means are provided for forming metal articles from strip fed into the machine in a timed relationship from two different locations. In the preferred embodiment two sets of die punch mechanisms are mounted in a single frame such that the metal strip may be worked on during the machine cycle by each die punch set. In addition, means are included in the preferred embodiment for feeding both sides of the machine from a single reel of strip.

The invention accordingly comprises the features of construction, combinations of elements and arrangement of parts which will be exemplified in the construction hereinafter set forth and the scope of the invention will be indicated in the claims.

For a fuller understanding of the nature and objects of the invention, reference should be had] to the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of a cam eyelet machine embodying the invention;

FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view taken along line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken along line 3-3 of FIG. 1, showing the operating parts of the machine during a portion of the machine cycle;

FIG. 4 is a partial view similar to FIG. 3, the operating parts of the machine during another of the machine cycle;

FIG. 5a is a chart illustrating the movement of portions of one side of the machine;

FIG. 5b is a chart illustrating the movement of portions of the other side of the machine; and

FIG. 50 is a chart illustrating the movement of the transfer means of the machine.

To illustrate the preferred embodiment of the invention, there is shown in FIGS. 1-4 a cam eyelet machine comprising a frame 10 upon which there is mounted a second supporting frame 11. Supported by frame 11 is a first tool set generally shown at 15. Also supported by the frame 11 on the other side of the machine is a second tool set generally shown at 16. The tool sets 15 and 16 are so arranged in the preferred embodiment that a metal blank entering from both sides of the machine will progressively move to the center of the machine and subsequently be ejected from the machine after it is formed. The tool sets 15 and 16 are also arranged in the preferred embodiment such that two articles may be fabricated by the cam eyelet machine in substantially the same cyclic time it took to form one article with the machines of the prior art. It will be understood that various types of dies and punches may showing portion be substituted for those shown in the preferred embodiment as, for example, the two tool sets could be making different types of articles simultaneously, if desired. The tool set comprises a plurality of dies shown at and a plurality of plungers shown at 21. Each of these plungers has positioned at one end thereof closest the die, various shaped punches or knock-out mechanisms for working on the metal article being formed in the dies. One of said punches is shown at 22 in FIG. 1. The second tool set 16 includes a plurality of dies generally shown at 30, plungers generally shown at 31 and a plurality of punches coupled to the plungers 31, not shown.

In order to drive the plungers 21 and 31 in a timed relationship with each other and in timed relationship of the plungers of each set, there is provided a plurality of cams, generally shown at and 41 for moving the plungers toward and away from dies 20 and 30, respectively. To drive the cams 40 and 41, a motor is provided. A shaft 51 of the motor 50 is coupled to a pulley 52 which in turn is coupled to a second pulley 53 by a belt 54. The second pulley 53 is mounted on a shaft 56 which is supported from the frame 11. Positioned on shaft 56 is another pulley 57 for driving another pulley 58 by a belt 59. Pulley 58 is mounted on a shaft 60 which in turn is connected to the cams 40 and 41 in a manner to drive them so that the plungers 21 and 31 respectively move toward and away from the dies 20 and 30 respectively in a timed relationship.

Also shown in FIG. 1 is a plurality of knock-out pins 61 which cooperate with dies 20 and 30 respectively. To selectively actuate the knock-out pins 61 there is provided a plurality of cams 62 and 63 positioned on a shaft 65 supported in the frame 11. In order to drive shaft 65, there is provided a bevel gear arrangement comprising gears 70a and 70b. The gear 70a is coupled to the drive shaft 60, and gear 70b of the bevel gear arrangement is coupled to another drive shaft 71 which extends in a downward direction to drive a second bevel gear arrangement shown at 73. The bevel gear arrangement 73 comprises gears 73a and 73b. The gear 73a is coupled to shaft 71 and the gear 73b is coupled to the shaft 65. In this manner the movement of the punches as well as the knock-out pins for dies 20 and 30 are controlled in a timed relationship.

Referring now in particular to FIG. 2, there is shown one die and plunger-punch which includes the die 30, the plunger 31 and the punch 32. To operate the plunger 31 in a downward direction, a cam 79 is positioned on the drive shaft 60. The cam 79 cooperates with a cam follower 80 which is coupled to a plunger lift plate 81. Upon rotation of the cam 79, the plunger 31 due to the shape of cam 79 will be moved in a downward direction so that it forces a metal blank into the cavity of the die 30, thus shaping the blank. The punch and plunger are guided by guide plates 82 and 83 supported from the frame 11. To lift the plunger 31 and its punch 22 after completion of the forming operation, a second cam 83 also mounted on the drive shaft 60, abuts against a lift arm 84 which is itself coupled to a lift rod 85 and guided by the plate 82 and the top portion of frame 11. Lift rod 85 is connected to the plunger by the common plate 81. Thus, as the drive shaft rotates, the plunger 31 will be moved downwardly by the cam 79 and will be moved in an upward direction by the action of cam 83 against the lift arm 84.

Also shown in FIG. 2 is a knock-out pin 61 which is actuated in timed relationship with the plunger 31 by cam 62 mounted on the shaft 65.

Referring now to FIGS. 1, 3 and 4, there is shown a transfer slide which cooperates with both dies 20 and 30 and the knock-out pins 61 to move the blank being formed between stations numbered 1-6 as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. The transfer slide 90 is slidably movable in frame 11 and is driven by a dovetail slide 91 coupled thereto at 92. The dovetail slide 91 is driven by a cam 93 mounted on the shaft 71. The cam 93 selectively engages cam rolls 94 and 95 to reciprocate. the slide 90, thereby transferring the article being formed between the stations in a timed relationship.

The transfer slide 90 is equipped with a plurality of ball and spring transfer fingers, shown at 96, for gripping the article and moving it to the next station. The transfer slide also includes, at both ends, recesses 97 for receiving the blank cut at the first station and transferring the blank to the second station. As more particularly shown in FIG. 1, the sixth station is the drop-out station, wherein the transfer finger positions the article so that ejecting pins 98 coupled to plungers 21 and 31 respectively will push the article through openings 99 in the dies 20 and 30 respectively and into a funnel and container (not shown).

Referring again to FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, there is disclosed a mechanism for feeding strip metal into the cam eyelet machine of this invention. The strip, shown at 100, is normally mounted on a roll which is spaced from the cam eyelet machine. The strip material used is generally of light-gage metal, such that it may be easily provided to the eyelet machine from a roll. It is to be understood that other types of metal-providing apparatus may also be utilized.

The mechanism for feeding the strip 100 from a roll comprises feed rollers 101 and 102. These rollers include an idler roll 101a and a drive roll 10112, and idler roll 102a and drive roll 102b, respectively. The drive roll 10111 is mounted below the strip 100, whereas the idler roll 101a is positioned on the other side of the strip 100. The drive roll 101b is driven by a shaft 103 coupled to a one-way drive 104 which is in turn driven by a rod 105 coupled to a crank plate 106. This crank plate 106 is driven by a gear 107 mounted on the shaft 65. The drive roll 102k is driven in a similar manner in a timed relationship with the movement of drive roll 101b by a one-way drive 109 coupled to a shaft 110. This oneway drive is driven by a rod 111 coupled to a crank plate 112 which is driven by a gear 113 mounted on the shaft 65.

As one of the important and novel features of this invention, a guide mechanism is mounted on the top of frame 11 so that material which has been blanked on one side at station 1 of the dies 20, can then be fed back to the feed roller 102 such that the other side of the metal strip 100 may be blanked at station 1 of the dies 30. Thus a single strip of metal may be utilized to feed both sides of the machine without requiring an additional roll of strip. After the strip leaves the die 30, it is then wound as scrap in the usual manner of the prior art.

While the operation of the apparatus will be clear from the foregoing description, it is now briefly described in conjunction with FIGS. 5a, 5b and 50, for the purpose of further clarity. By reference again to FIGS. 1-4, the cam eyelet machine shown is constructed such that the dies 20 and 30 are provided with six work stations each. The work station 1 of each of dies 20 and 30 and the corresponding punches are adapted to cut a blank from strip 100 and work station 6 of each of said dies is utilized as an ejecting station. The remainder of the work stations and the corresponding punches are utilized to form the metal blank into the shape desired.

The graphs of FIGS. 5a, 5b and 50 represent the timing relationship (in terms of phase) between the plungers of both sides of the machine and the movement of the transfer slide between both sides of the machine. In particular, FIG. 5a represents the movement of plungers of the right side of the machine toward and away from the respective dies. The broken line in FIG. 5a represents the movement of the blanking plunger (station 1) and the solid line in FIG. 5a represents the movement of the forming plungers (stations 26). FIG. 5b is the same as FIG. 5a, except that it represents the movement of the plungers of the left side of the machine. The FIG. 50 represents the timed movement of the transfer slide between the two sides of the machine.

In operation, a strip of metal is fed into the blanking plungers of tool sets 15 and 16 respectively. The blanking plungers cut out blanks and force them into the recesses 97 of the slide. As the slide moves back and forth between the sides of the machine the blanks are delivered to the work station 2 wherein the first forming step is to take place. Assuming now that the transfer slide is in the position shown in FIG. 4 and the timing cycle is at 90, the right side forming punches (stations 2-6) as shown in FIG. 5a, begin to descend on their respective dies to push the workpiece out of the fingers and into the dies so that the workpiece may be formed. At the same time, the transfer slide dwells in position, as shown in FIG. 50. At 180, the right side plungers (stations 2-6) begin to lift out and then dwell for a short time before continuing to rise again. As the forming plungers (stations 2-6) rise, the workpieces are stripped from the punches by strippers (not shown) and enter the fingers of the transfer slide which has moved to the right side of the machine at 180. The blanking operation takes place on the right side of the machine at about 270", wherein the blanking punch (station 1) forces a blank into the recesses 97 of the transfer slide. While the right side of the machine is operating, the left side is also operating in the timed relationship as shown in FIG. 5b. These operations are repeated with every revolution of the cam shaft, so that when the work is completed in the final operation, other blanks are being progressively formed in the other dies. Thus, a part is produced with every stroke and is delivered through a tube (not shown) positioned at station 6, to a receptacle. Additional delivery tubes dispose of the scrap from the forming operations.

From the foregoing, it is observable that the cams on the right side of the machine are substantially 180 out of phase with those on the left side. There is no power overload, since only one side of the machine is forming at any time.

It is to be understood that a machine may be constructed without the blanking punches, without departing from the scope of the invention, as long as means are provided for delivering blanks to the machine.

It will thus be seen that the objects set forth above, among those made apparent from the preceding description, are efficiently obtained and since certain changes may be made in the above construction without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

It is to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover all the generic and specific features of the invention herein described and all statements of the scope of the invention which, as a matter of language, might be said to fall therebetween.

What is claimed is:

1. A cam eyelet machine for forming metal articles from blanks cut from strips of metal fed into the machine, said machine comprising in combination, a frame, a first tool set mounted on said frame, a second tool set mounted on said frame adjacent said first tool set, said tool sets having punches positionable in a plane substantially perpendicular to the faces of the dies, a transfer slide movable in a plane substantially parallel to the faces of the dies of both tool sets, said transfer slide sequentially moving the metal article formed in said first and second tool sets through said first and second tool sets respectively, and means for moving said punches and said transfer slide in timed relationship such that while one tool set is forming the metal article, the metal article already formed in the other tool set is being returned to the transfer slide for positioning at the next forming location.

2. A machine tool for forming metal articles comprising in combination a frame, a first tool set mounted on one side of the frame, said first tool set .including a plurality of plungers having punches mounted thereon and mating dies positioned with respect to each other such that the plungers may advance the punches toward and away from said mating dies, a second tool set mounted adjacent to said first tool set and positioned on the other side of said frame, said second tool set including a plurality of plungers having punches mounted thereon and mating dies positioned with respect to each other such that the plungers may advance the punches toward and away from said mating dies, transfer means mounted in said frame for sequentially advancing through said first and second tool sets metal blanks being formed by the first and second tool sets, respectively, and including means for advancing and retracting the plungers and moving the transfer means such that the plungers of one tool set are advancing to move the metal blanks out of the transfer means and into the dies while the plungers oi the other tool set are retracting to return formed metal blanks to the transfer means.

3. A machine tool for forming metal articles comprising in combination a frame, a first tool set mounted on 'one side of the frame, said first tool set including a plurality of plungers having punches mounted thereon and mating dies positioned with respect to each other such that the plungers may advance the punches toward and away from said mating dies, a second tool set mounted adjacent to said first tool set and positioned on the other side of said frame, said second tool set including a plurality of plungers having punches mounted thereon and mating dies positioned with respect to each other such that the plungers may advance the punches toward and away from said mating dies, transfer means mounted in said frame for sequentially advancing through said first and second tool sets metal blanks being formed by the first and second tool sets, respectively, and wherein said transfer means is a transfer slide and including means for driving the plungers and the transfer means in timed relationship such that the metal blank is being formed in one tool set while a second metal article is returned from the other tool set to the transfer means.

4. A machine tool in accordance with claim 3, including feed means for intermittently feeding strip material in a timed relationship with the movement of the transfer slide and the plungers to said first and second tool sets, whereby a blank is cut from said strip.

5. A machine tool in accordance with claim 4, including means for guiding strip which has been fed to and passed through one of said tool sets to the other of said tool sets, so that both sides of a single strip of material may be used to supply blanks to both of said tool sets.

6. A machine in accordance with claim 1, wherein the punches and dies of the tool sets are mounted in the frame such that metal articles as they are being worked on in both tool sets progress toward each other and toward the center of the machine prior to being ejected from the machine.

7. A machine in accordance with claim 1, including means for feeding strip material into one end of the first tool set and for feeding the same strip, after a blank has been cut out by the first tool set, into the second tool set where a second blank is cut out therefrom by said second tool set.

8. A machine tool for forming metal articles from blanks cut from strips of metal fed into the machine, said machine comprising in combination, :a frame, a first tool set mounted on said frame, a second tool set mounted on said frame adjacent said first tool set, said tool sets having punches positionable in a plane substantially perpendicular to the faces of the dies, a transfer slide movable in a plane substantially parallel to the faces of the dies of both tool sets, said transfer slide sequentially moving the metal article formed in said first and second tool sets through said first and second tool sets respectively, means for moving said punches and said transfer slide in a timed relationship and means for feeding strip material into the 7 first tool set and for feeding the same strip, after a blank has been cut out by the first tool set, into the second tool set where a second blank is cut out therefrom by said second tool set.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 768,876 8/1904 Campbell 72405 1,005,622 10/1911 Eisenbeis 72405 Sherman 72405 MacMillan 72421 Marshall et a1. 72405 Stevens 72405 Stevens 72405 CHARLES W. LANHAM, Primav'y Examiner.

E. M. COMBS, Assistant Examiner. 

